Why Any Social Security COLA Increase Is Too Little, Too Late

Social Security recipients are expected to receive their biggest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in years, but it may be too little, too late.

According to an article by Cleveland.com, the 2027 COLA is expected to be around 3.5 percent. While that’s higher than this year’s 2.8 percent and last year’s 2.6 percent, seniors will still struggle against rising inflation. Grocery bills, housing costs, healthcare expenses, and insurance premiums have been steadily increasing, and the COLA just can’t keep up.

If the COLA stays as predicted, seniors will receive an additional $70 per month next year. That will help, but retirees continue to lose buying power year after year. For the past year, we’ve been paying more for groceries, gas, and other expenses.

That imbalance could change if a few simple changes were made.

Call for a New COLA Calculator

Senior advocates, including The Seniors Trust, believe seniors would be better served if the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly (CPI-E) was used instead of the current Consumer Price Index for Wage Earners (CPI-W). The CPI-E index shows how inflation actually impacts the typical retiree based on seniors’ spending habits. 

We are calling on Congress to enact the Social Security Expansion Act. One of its main points calls for adopting the CPI-E as the COLA calculator, better ensuring that Social Security benefits keep pace with inflation.

Additionally, this landmark piece of legislation will also extend the solvency of the Social Security trust fund through 2096, expand Social Security benefits by about $200 a month for current and new beneficiaries, require millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share into Social Security by lifting the wage cap, and improve the Special Minimum Benefit for Social Security recipients, which would help low-income workers stay out of poverty. 

Is this something you can get on board with? Join us in urging lawmakers to enact the Social Security Expansion Act. You can show your support by signing our petition.